Wednesday, February 08, 2006

An interesting interpretation on what the Muhammad cartoons signify from University of Iowa assistant professor in religious studies, Ahmed Souaiaia, are highlighted in the Des Moines Register today.

Souaiaia pointed specifically to one of the caricatures, which depicts Muhammad wearing a bomb for a turban.

"The message is that Islam is inherently violent since its founder is someone who taught violence," Souaiaia said. "Such a message does not distinguish between the various facets of Islam, a religion that is so diverse to be stereotyped by reductionist cartoons like the ones published."

I have to disagree here. These controversial Mohammed cartoons are really nothing more than the result of the negative attitudes toward Islam that we non-Muslims have as a result of the repeated violence Islam has heaped upon the world.

It is Muslim violence that carries the message of Muslim violence. It is its own horn and standard bearer. I don't need a cartoon of a bomb-packed Muhammad to display to me the violence of Muslims. I see the results of bomb-packed Muslims in real life almost every day.

Souaiaia is in a tough position now, as are other peace loving Muslims. They have allowed the Wahibbis to hijack their cause and now they suffer from the public relations problems created by their complicity.

Disrespect of Islam didn't begin with these cartoons. It began when islamist Muslims decided that blowing up innocent people was a viable political practice.